Bill Gates: President Obama Should Have More Power

Bill Gates, the co-founder of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) said that sometimes he wish President Barack Obama had more power to prevent the current political dysfunction.

During an interview with POLITICO’s Playbook Cocktails, Bill Gates said, “You don’t run a business like this.” Gates was in Washington advocating polio eradication.

The wealthiest American applauded President Obama for his work on education and former President George W. Bush for his efforts to fight AIDS. Bush had launched The President’s Emergency Plan For AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). The tech titan also compared America’s governance with another country.

Gates said he wishes the American political system were like the U.K.’s so that the U.S. President might have “slightly more power.” In England, said Gates, the elected party has the power to do a lot, and people can see how it went.

Gates did admit that the U.S. system seems to be slightly better than the British system. But it’s ironic that there are a lot of things President Obama wants to do, but he actually doesn’t have the power to do. That gap is sometimes really big.

Talking about the performance of President Obama, Gates said the President hasn’t been appreciated enough for his efforts in the field of education. Gates witnessed the same lack of appreciation for the AIDS efforts of Bush. Gates added he once went to an AIDS conference where someone talked about Bush, and the audience expressed disapproval. That’s unfair. The software czar thinks that PEPFAR is one of the best things happened under Bush’s “leadership.”

Talking about his home country, Gates told POLITICO’s Playbook Cocktails that the current immigration law of the country is the biggest policy impediment. He briefly talked about the controversial temporary work visas. Gates favored retaining skill workforce through green cards.

Last year, Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) ranked 11th in the number of applications for for H-1B temporary work visas.

[via: CNET]

‘Get ValueWalk’s Daily Edition By Email and Never Miss Our Top Stories’